Government signs MOU for rural electrification program

The government has signed an agreement with three French firms to improve the delivery of energy services to the country’s rural areas.

Energy Secretary Vincent S. Perez said the Department of Energy (DOE), the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and French companies led by Paris-Manila Technology Corp. (Pamatec), Electricité de France and ETDE of Bouygues Construction signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) aimed at providing adequate, affordable and reliable energy services in rural areas through the Philippine Rural Electrification Service (PRES) project.

The PRES project aims to energize unelectrified barangays in the far flung areas or those that are not reached by grid connection.

Perez said the MOU, in behalf of the French group, was signed by Hubert D‚ Aboville, president and CEO of Pamatec.

Based on the MOU, the French consortium will provide funding in the form of a grant for the feasibility study which will identify the least cost of energy source to be used.

The French-Filipino Funding Protocol is seen to extend financing package of about 23 million Euros for the implementation of the project.

Initially, the PRES project will provide electricity to 14 municipalities in Masbate, benefiting some 18,000 households in 128 barangays in the province.

The project proposes to install mini-grid systems that will be powered by a centralized generation facility particularly diesel in concentrated areas. Photovoltaic systems, on the other hand, will be utilized for off grid areas.

The PRES project will also install community facilities such as lighting for barangay halls, lighting and vaccine refrigeration for rural health units, lighting and video cine for school buildings and streetlights within the barangay center.

For its part, the DOE will identify and validate areas and barangays to be selected for the project to ensure that there are no possible overlaps as far as target areas and implementation strategies are concerned. It will also be in charge of providing policy direction and oversight function in the overall implementation of the project.

"This MOU will be a big contribution to the achievement of our total electrification program. But more importantly it will generate employment to the people in the area. Several livelihood projects are also being lined up which will be supported by micro-finance institutions to improve the living conditions of the people," Perez said.